International Family Planning Funding Essential To Achieve Global Security

Aug 05, 2013

Noting the House Appropriations Committee last month voted to cut spending for international family planning programs under the FY 2014 State and Foreign Operations Appropriations budget, compared with last year’s amount, John Seager, president of Population Connection, writes in a GlobalPost opinion piece, “A lack of access to birth control leads to rapid population growth. And rapid population growth often leads to the types of problems that can cause political instability, such as food insecurity, water scarcity, lack of arable land and environmental degradation.” He continues, “Of course, population growth isn’t the only cause of instability. But it is an important one. And it’s one that we can tackle, if we just have the will.” “Research shows that 222 million women around the world want to avoid pregnancy but don’t have access to affordable, appropriate contraception,” Seager states, noting some potential implications of the House appropriations bill. He concludes, “Until our political leaders get serious about funding international family planning — and achieving a stable global population — our world will be less secure than it could be. Count on it” (8/3).